The present invention generally relates to a sensor placed with respect to an ear. More particularly, the sensor is used to detect speech and other oral vocalizations of a person with a microphone as well as deliver sound to the ear of the person with a speaker. Feedback from the speaker to the microphone is reduced.
Wireless mobile telephones, also referred to as a cellular telephones, have become exceedingly popular communication devices. However, the vast majority of cellular telephones contain a transceiver (e.g., a radio frequency, or RF, transceiver) for establishing a communication link with a remote location, such as a cell phone tower. In order to carry out a conversation with another person using the wireless telephone, the user must hold the telephone adjacent the ear and mouth of the user. This presents the disadvantage of occupying the use of at least one of the user""s hands. In many situations, hands free use of the wireless telephone is desirable. The same is true for receivers, or handsets, found in hard-wired telephone systems. For example, the user of a hard-wired telephone system may wish to type on a computer while speaking on the phone. In addition, medical professionals and others have expressed concerns relating to the health of wireless telephone users who engage in prolonged use of an RF transceiver adjacent their head.
There are many commercially available headsets available to users of wireless and/or hard-wired telephone systems. These headsets are intended to assist the user in carrying out a conversation without the use of the user""s hands and to locate the telephone (and any RF transceiver) away from the user""s head. These headsets typically include an ear piece containing a speaker. The ear piece can be removably placed with respect to the user""s ear and broadcasts sounds to the user""s ear. The headsets also typically include a microphone disposed on a support member that positions the microphone with respect to the users mouth. The microphone is used to detect speech and other vocalizations emanating from the mouth of the user. The detected sounds are converted into an electrical signal and transmitted by the telephone to a backbone telecommunications network and on to the telephone of another person. In this manner the user can carry out a fully duplexed conversation with the other person.
However, the headsets can be cumbersome to use. More particularly, care must be taken to ensure that the microphone is properly positioned and that the microphone maintains that position. The need to adjust the headset during a conversation can be distracting to the user. In addition, improper positioning of the microphone may lead to poor and/or unreliable detection of the user""s speech. This problem is compounded by the common occurrence of the microphone detecting environmental noise, such as the sound of a passing vehicle, conversations taking place near the user and the like. The detected environmental noise is ultimately transmitted by the telephone.
Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for an easy to use telephone headset that accurately detects the user""s speech, even when speaking at a low volume, and reduces the detection of environmental noise.
According to one aspect of the invention, an earset including a housing positionable with respect to an ear of a person; a microphone disposed with respect to the housing for insertion into the ear of a person, the microphone operable to detect a change in air pressure within the ear while the person speaks and to produce an electrical microphone signal corresponding to the internally detected change in air pressure; a speaker disposed with respect to the housing and operable to produce a sound corresponding to an electrical speaker signal; and a circuit coupled to receive the microphone signal and the speaker signal and operable to produce a corrected microphone signal having a reduced feedback component of the microphone signal, the feedback component resulting from the detection by the microphone of the sound produced by the speaker to produce a corrected microphone signal.
According to another aspect of the invention, a method of detecting speech of a person including the steps of placing a microphone at least partially within an ear of the person; detecting a change in air pressure within the ear of the person using the microphone, the change in air pressure corresponding to the speech of the person; producing an electrical microphone signal corresponding to the internally detected change in air pressure; placing a speaker with respect to the ear of the person; generating a sound with the speaker corresponding to an electrical speaker signal; and generating a corrected microphone signal by reducing a feedback component of the microphone signal, the feedback component resulting from the detection by the microphone of the sound generated by the speaker to produce a corrected microphone signal.
According to yet another aspect of the invention, a method of enhancing a signal representing a detected first sound pattern, including directly coupling the signal representing the detected first sound pattern with a signal for producing a second sound pattern.